Melissa McClain-- LLT 307 Portfolio
My Teaching Philosophy
My goal in life has always been to help people. Some choose to serve others with medicine or technology; I desire to serve others by teaching.
I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. English has also been my strongest subject in school-- particularly grammar-- and that is the subject that I finally decided that I would like to teach. I spent a year teaching English in South Korea during 2008-2009 and fell in love with teaching English to speakers of other languages. I felt that by pursuing this profession, I could help make a difference in the lives of those struggling to adapt to life in the United States of America.
AS A TEACHER:
* I want to make sure that my students are getting the most out of every lesson. I want my lessons to be shaped for and catered to the specific needs of my students. I want to keep in mind while lesson planning that every student has his or her own way of learning (for example, auditory or visual). One learning style will work best for one type of student, but I need to be cognizant of the other learning styles that my students possess. To quote the Oxford article, "learning style is the biologically and developmentally imposed set of characteristics that make the same teaching method wonderful for some and terrible for others." I should not teach an important concept in my classroom in only one way; I should teach it in several different ways so that every student will have a chance for comprehension.
* I do not want to dominate the class discussion. I want the students to be free to express their own opinions, explain difficult concepts to their peers, and ask questions whenever they are confused. The learning environment ought to be comfortable so that the students will not be afraid to take risks in practicing the language. The old adage says that “practice makes perfect” and I want that to be true in my classroom. If I am dominating the conversation, the students will lose out on opportunities to practice their language skills. "If one doesn't practice using the language, it is difficult to maintain it" (SIOP 115).
* I need to make my lessons applicable to my students’ lives so that they will be engaged in learning. If the students understand why what they are learning is important, they will be more motivated to learn. What the students learn in the classroom ought to be authentic and meaningful, otherwise it will be a waste of their time because it will be forgotten as soon as they leave. If the students can take what they learn in my classroom and use it in their every day life, it will be worthwhile and productive. "For students acquiring a new language, the need to apply new information is critically important because discussing and 'doing' make abstract concepts concrete" (SIOP 141).
* My goal will be to put the students first. I will do everything in my power to help them learn; I will do whatever it takes to help them learn the skills that they need to be successful in and out of the classroom.
I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. English has also been my strongest subject in school-- particularly grammar-- and that is the subject that I finally decided that I would like to teach. I spent a year teaching English in South Korea during 2008-2009 and fell in love with teaching English to speakers of other languages. I felt that by pursuing this profession, I could help make a difference in the lives of those struggling to adapt to life in the United States of America.
AS A TEACHER:
* I want to make sure that my students are getting the most out of every lesson. I want my lessons to be shaped for and catered to the specific needs of my students. I want to keep in mind while lesson planning that every student has his or her own way of learning (for example, auditory or visual). One learning style will work best for one type of student, but I need to be cognizant of the other learning styles that my students possess. To quote the Oxford article, "learning style is the biologically and developmentally imposed set of characteristics that make the same teaching method wonderful for some and terrible for others." I should not teach an important concept in my classroom in only one way; I should teach it in several different ways so that every student will have a chance for comprehension.
* I do not want to dominate the class discussion. I want the students to be free to express their own opinions, explain difficult concepts to their peers, and ask questions whenever they are confused. The learning environment ought to be comfortable so that the students will not be afraid to take risks in practicing the language. The old adage says that “practice makes perfect” and I want that to be true in my classroom. If I am dominating the conversation, the students will lose out on opportunities to practice their language skills. "If one doesn't practice using the language, it is difficult to maintain it" (SIOP 115).
* I need to make my lessons applicable to my students’ lives so that they will be engaged in learning. If the students understand why what they are learning is important, they will be more motivated to learn. What the students learn in the classroom ought to be authentic and meaningful, otherwise it will be a waste of their time because it will be forgotten as soon as they leave. If the students can take what they learn in my classroom and use it in their every day life, it will be worthwhile and productive. "For students acquiring a new language, the need to apply new information is critically important because discussing and 'doing' make abstract concepts concrete" (SIOP 141).
* My goal will be to put the students first. I will do everything in my power to help them learn; I will do whatever it takes to help them learn the skills that they need to be successful in and out of the classroom.
